We have been rather snooty about ignoring the wisdom of cultures that have found benefits to drugs that go beyond ritual

The Independent (UK)Thursday, January 31, 2019

Are you one of the 10 million people who have used drugs like cannabis or cocaine? Make no mistake, drugs are fun. They must be, given the scale of drug use and the long history we humans have of using them. Despite the upside of using drugs, it’s not an aspect that’s given the attention it deserves, a bit like the way no one seems interested in good news stories. Instead, when drugs are featured in the media it’s usually to panic about the latest incarnation of some new pill or powder. Then there’s the fear of becoming addicted, but in truth this is rare and our understanding of how this happens and who is at risk is still being unravelled.

The Israeli industry was estimated to be worth about $11 billion four years ago and had grown since then

Newsweek (US)Thursday, January 31, 2019

The Israeli cabinet approved legislation that will transform the Middle Eastern country into an exporter of marijuana for medical use. “I am glad this is finally happening. It opens a very big market in Israel. The technology is here in Israel and until now we simply had to give the technology to other countries,” Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked said, Reuters reported. “Therefore, I am glad we can reap the profits here in Israel.” Elsewhere in the Middle East, Israel’s neighbor Lebanon has voiced plans to legalize medical cannabis for cultivation and export as well. Last July, Lebanese House Speaker Nabih Berri told the U.S. ambassador to his country, Elizabeth Richard, that his country planned to move forward with the legalization, CNN reported.

Putting substances like MDMA and marijuana in pharmacies would take the power out of the hands of “backyard amateur operators”

News Com (Australia)Wednesday, January 30, 2019

A leading drug reform advocate and esteemed doctor is calling for a shake up to the illicit drug market, suggesting substances like MDMA, marijuana and ecstasy should be regulated and sold at chemists. Speaking on Today, Dr Alex Wodak, head of the Australian Drug Law Reform Foundation, called for the idea to be considered as a way of reducing deaths. “You can’t prevent deaths completely. But if you reduce them a lot that’s well worthwhile,” Dr Wodak said. “I’m not saying (it’s) safe, I’m saying it’s safer. Nothing is safe — it is only you can reduce the risk, you can’t eliminate the risk. And we should try to reduce the risk.” (See also: Former top cop backs Dr Alex Wodak's call to regulate MDMA)

Legal status isn’t based on risk or harm

The Conversation (UK)Wednesday, January 30, 2019

Drug-related offences take up a lot of the resources within Australia’s criminal justice system. In 2016–17 law enforcement made 113,533 illicit drug seizures and 154,650 drug-related arrests. Harm-reduction advocates are calling for the legalisation of some drugs, and the removal of criminal penalties on others. And there’s public support for both. But how did some drugs become illegal in the first place? And what drives our current drug laws? Australia, like the rest of the world, has had a patchy approach to criminalising substances, driven mostly by a desire to maintain international relations – particularly with the United States – rather than by concern for the public’s health or welfare.

Far more people are requesting their doctors to prescribe cannabis than expected

The Copenhagen Post (Denmark)Tuesday, January 29, 2019

A year ago, and in the teeth of opposition from some doctors, the Danish health authorities decided to approve a four-year pilot project under which GPs were able to give patients medicinal cannabis as pain relief for certain ailments. It was estimated that around 500 people would request the drug, but figures reveal that almost three times as many – 1,400 patients – have done so over the first year. The Danish College of General Practitioners has been sceptical from the start, and the new figures do nothing to dispel its reservations. Not all doctors have the requisite knowledge to prescribe cannabis and that most GPs have too few patients on the drug to assess the effects of the treatment. (See also: Danish medicinal cannabis prescriptions exceed expected numbers)

Israeli companies are among the world’s biggest producers of medical cannabis

Reuters (UK)Sunday, January 27, 2019

Israel’s cabinet approved a law to allow exports of medical cannabis in a move expected to boost state revenues and the agriculture sector, and which frustrates critics who fear it could lead to more recreational use of the drug. The bill, backed last month by parliament, allows companies approved by the health regulator and police to export medical cannabis to countries that permit its use. Israeli media said exports could start in as little as nine months. “I am glad this is finally happening. It opens a very big market in Israel. The technology is here in Israel and until now we simply had to give the technology to other countries,” said Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked. (See also: Stocks soar as Israel allows cannabis exports)

Any controls have to consider whether they would create a legal vacuum that the black market could fill

New Zealand Herald (New Zealand)Saturday, January 26, 2019

The 2020 referendum to legalise cannabis looks likely to propose a tightly regulated framework, including strict rules on supply and possession, an age limit of at least 18, and a non-profit model where money from sales may be funnelled into health services. And while it is widely accepted that legalising personal use would not eliminate harm or kill off a black market, a political consensus appears to be emerging that the status quo is broken, but a profit-driven legal market would be just as bad. Justice Minister Andrew Little said the Government was still working on the referendum question, but he personally opposed to a framework similar to alcohol if the public voted for legalisation in 2020.

Saving lives and clearing needles off the streets: Bristol has the power to become the first UK city to set up a safe consumption room

The Bristol Cable (UK)Friday, January 25, 2019

Unlike in Bristol, in 66 cities around the world, drug users don’t have to take their drugs in public or down an alleyway. Instead they do it in a clean, safe environment. Safe consumption rooms (SCRs) are legal medical facilities where drug users safely take their illegal substances – particularly heroin and crack – with staff on hand if they overdose. They have been found to reduce deaths, make drug use safer, and clean up the streets of public injecting and used needles. The council has done a feasibility study into whether Bristol could also become the first UK city to set up a SCR, but has delayed its review. The city’s main treatment provider, Bristol Drugs Project (BDP), has indicated to me that a SCR would reduce harm and they would support a pilot.

A police review has found that over 700 people were arrested and 710 kilograms of cannabis confiscated in the alternative enclave of Christiania in 2018

The Local (Denmark)Wednesday, January 23, 2019

Illicit trade of cannabis at the Pusher Street market in Copenhagen’s Christiania is being put under pressure by an intensive effort from law enforcement, according to Copenhagen Police. “This is the result of an intensified effort which we initiated in May last year, whereby we increased our permanent presence on Pusher Street with both patrols and destruction of market stands,” Copenhagen’s chief of police Anne Tønnes said. Market stands on Pusher Street, from where cannabis is sometimes traded, reappear when police are not present in the area. But sales of cannabis have fallen to such an extent that organised crime behind the trade is now feeling the pinch, according to Tønnes. That does not necessarily prevent it from relocating to another part of the city.

This website

UN Drug Control

In 2011 the 1961 UN Single Convention on drugs will be in place for 50 years. In 2012 the international drug control system will exist 100 years since the International Opium Convention was signed in 1912 in The Hague. Does it still serve its purpose or is a reform of the UN Drug Conventions needed? This site provides critical background.